High speed commercial packaging machines for loading items such as grouped beverage cans and containers into paperboard cartons are well known. Examples are shown in a variety of patents such as, for instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,706,633, owned by the assignee of the present invention, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
There is a commercial demand for larger heavier containers to be packaged into cartons for transport and sale. Such containers may include, for example, bulk soft drink containers such as two liter containers and larger filled with soft drink and small mini-kegs of beer that have more recently become popular. Loading such containers into cartons in a high speed commercial packaging machine presents numerous unique challenges that arise from the large size, substantial weight when filled, and relatively fragile walls of larger containers. For example, because large containers filled with product are significantly heavier than smaller containers such as beverage cans, they can develop significantly more momentum when moving through a packaging machine at high speeds. It is thus more difficult to stop them or change their direction without puncturing or otherwise damaging the walls of the container. This can be particularly troublesome in the event of an emergency stop of the packaging machine, wherein the containers come to an abrupt stop. This can cause large containers to tip over due to their momentum, which can cascade and result ultimately in broken containers, spilled product, and can require much clean-up and reset time to be dedicated by machine operators.
Because of the nature of high speed packaging machines and the cartons into which articles are packaged, large containers such as those discussed above are most efficiently moved into their cartons on their sides. More specifically, the containers are most efficiently loaded by being pushed into the open tops or bottoms of corresponding cartons, which also are oriented on their sides and moved synchronously with the containers. However, the containers are naturally conveyed, perhaps filled, and arranged at upstream stations of the packaging machine in an upright orientation. Accordingly, they must be reoriented by being laid over on their sides before entering the insertion station of the packaging machine, which pushes the containers into their cartons. Such reorientation is generally not required for smaller articles such as beverage cans. The challenge is to reorient the large heavier containers, which are moving at relatively high speeds, from their upright orientations to a sideways orientation and to space them to match the pitch of the adjacent cartons in a gentle and controlled manner so that they do not become displaced or damaged during the process.
A need exists for a method and apparatus to handle and reorient larger heavier containers such as mini-kegs and large soft drink bottles in a high speed packaging machine in such a way that the containers do not become damaged or displaced. A related need exists for a method and apparatus for containing or stabilizing such containers as they are conveyed and reoriented to prevent tipping of the containers. It is to the provision of a method and apparatus that address these and other challenges that the invention disclosed herein is primarily directed.